Fumble recoveries prove big for Jaguars

Vito Stellino

DENVER -The Jaguars on Sunday showed how important turnovers are.

They recovered two fumbles in the first half and turned those into 10 points in a game they won 24-17. It was the first game the Jaguars have recovered two fumbles in a game since their victory in Denver last year. They also had an interception.

"It's huge," Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio said. "Always when you take the football away from somebody, it's big. You have to protect the football as much as possible."

After the first fumble, in which defensive end Reggie Hayward knocked the ball out of Jay Cutler's hands, Josh Scobee kicked a a 48-yard field goal for the Jaguars' first points.

The second fumble occurred when Brandon Marshall caught a pass at the Jaguars' 7 in the second quarter. Cornerback Drayton Florence knocked the ball out of Marshall's arms and recovered the fumble. The Jaguars then moved 75 yards for a touchdown to go ahead 10-7.

The Jaguars have converted turnovers into 41 points, but they haven't given up points off a turnover.

"Terrible, terrible call"

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell held a conference call with the league's 17 referees Friday to give them a pep talk because of all the controversy over the officiating this year.

After the Jaguars' victory, expect the controversy to continue.

The Broncos were irate about a pass-interference penalty on safety Marlon McCree with 4:39 left in the game that gave the Jaguars a 27-yard gain on second-and-8 from the Jaguars 41. It put them at the Denver 32, and the Jaguars ran out the clock.

"That call was a killer. It was a terrible, terrible call, but still we had a chance to stop them," Denver linebacker Jamie Winborn said.

The call was against McCree, a former Jaguar, who was covering tight end Greg Estandia.

"I was so focused on the ball when I went up, I don't really know really know what happened," Estandia said. "The ball went right over my hands. When I got up, my knee was hurting. I don't know what happened. It was a pretty big play, though."

Another controversial call, which involved receiver Reggie Williams, played a key role in a third-quarter touchdown for Jacksonville.

The Jaguars appeared to be ready to punt when David Garrard scrambled for 4 yards on a third-and-17 play at the Jaguars' 26. But Dre' Bly was called for illegal conduct, even though Williams appeared to shove Bly. That kept the Jaguars' drive alive, and they went on to score a touchdown.

The Jaguars also had gripes about the officiating. Del Rio said Bly should have been called for interference on a third-down pass to Matt Jones in the fourth quarter.

"I saw one that wasn't called right in front of me," Del Rio said.

He didn't want to elaborate.

"Us coaches get in trouble when we start talking about things like that. I got a bad case of amnesia," he said with a smile.

Taylor returns after taking hit

Running back Fred Taylor is 43 yards shy of the 11,000-yard career rushing mark. He left the game after the Jaguars' fifth play when Nate Webster delivered a jarring blow after Taylor caught a 10-yard pass and fumbled.

Taylor suffered a concussion and didn't return until midway in the third quarter. He wound up with 10 yards in three carries.

Taylor, who said he changed helmets when he came back in the game, now has 242 yards in six games.

Where's Porter?

Receiver Jerry Porter, who received $10 million in guaranteed money as a free agent, apparently isn't 100 percent recovered after undergoing hamstring surgery in the offseason. He played sparingly and did not have a catch.

Etc.

The Jaguars' pass rush didn't improve. They didn't have a sack, even though Cutler threw 37 passes. They have eight in six games ... Tutan Reyes replaced Milford Brown at right tackle in the starting lineup for the Jaguars. ... WR Brandon Stokley went out with a concussion in the first half, leaving the Broncos without their second, third and fourth receivers. WR Eddie Royal and TE Tony Scheffler sat out with injuries. ... Tony McDaniel started at defensive tackle in place of ailing Rob Meier for the Jaguars.